Is your team shoveling two tonnes or twenty tonnes a day? Frederick Taylor was the high priest of scientific, or rational, management. To his followers he was a saint who led the productivity revolution at the start of the 20th century. He enabled workers to achieve...

Technology and global teams: heaven and hell If you want to find the most innovative ways of global working, look at how some of the smallest global firms do it. Three firms in the research for Global Teams each qualified as micro-global firms. Each had less than...

What is the point of expats? Expats are hugely expensive. They are also not highly effective, at least to start with as they work out how the local culture and local business works. Often, they may not even speak the local language. If you are sent on an expat...

Who has the exotic culture? We are all heroes of our own life stories, and everyone else is just a bit part player. We are like medieval scientists: we think we are at the centre of our universe. As a global team player, we need to recognise that the world does not...

Ten top tips for running a global team How do you manage a team you can’t see, you don’t know and who are separated by time zones, language, culture and regulations? Welcome to the challenge of leading a global team. Meet your team. Even the most high tech firms find...